OverDrive - OverDrive - July 21, 2026 - Hour 2 - Kyle Davidson

Episode Date: July 21, 2026

Join Bryan Hayes and Frank Corrado for Hour 2 on OverDrive! Chicago Blackhawks General Manager Kyle Davidson joins the show to discuss the process behind signing superstar Connor Bedard, how the offer sheet landscape may change in the NHL, and his excitement on bringing in Bowen Byram. The guys play Confirm or Deny, and offer thoughts on if Macklin Celebrini could become the best player in the NHL as soon as next season. We wrap things up with FanDuel Best Bets.

Get Bell Pure Fiber Internet with Crave, Netflix, and Disney Plus from $94 a month. Price guaranteed for two years on Internet with a two-year term and auto pay credit. Visit bell.ca for details and to check availability. Bell, connection is everything. Hour 2 Overdrive continues, powered by Fandul. Brian Hayes, Frankie Carrotto. We're up on YouTube live streaming later this evening up on Crave. And we got confirmed with tonight coming up later in the hour.

Jay's back in action tonight. the federal government making a big investment in sport. I'm sure you saw that this morning, Frankie, a billion dollars being pumped into the system. I like hearing that. I saw that. I think that, you know, this World Cup fever, let's keep that going.

Let's keep the national team going on the men's and the women's side. Let's keep rocking. Yeah, you got to strike while the iron's hot, man. Build the soccer fields and not just soccer. Like build nice baseball diamonds, football fields. Like we have a lot of untapped potential when it comes to sports in this country. that we have to try and extract. I like that.

I like that viewpoint, and I agree with it. So we'll get into that a little bit later in the hour, including Tom Brady and what he's up to recently. That's coming up and confirm or deny. But we had Trevor Zegras on last hour, and Trevor just went through a contract negotiation himself. And obviously we were talking about Connor Bedard, Leo Carlson.

The league has kind of been turned upside down. It's pretty wild what's going on, especially with these younger players. And one of the teams that has been, I'd argue, most active this offseason and most compelling in terms of kind of what they're doing and what their plans are moving forward would be the Chicago Blackhawks.

And the guy in charge down there, the guy that's running the whole operation, joins us now. Here's the GM of the Blackhawks, Kyle Davidson, back on overdrive. How are you doing, Kyle? Hey, guys, doing well. Thanks for having me. Yeah, thank you so much for doing this. Is it a relief, like the Bidar deal getting that over with? I'm sure you always knew it was going to happen.

But now that it's done, you know, the number of the term, how much relief comes with that, and how much does it allow you to kind of plan for? for the next five years. Yeah, no, it's definitely exciting. And, you know, whenever you can lock in a cornerstone piece like Connor, it's certainly a good day for the organization. And so we're excited to make that happen, you know,

can cross the finish line the other day. And, yeah, kind of get going on planning out the next couple of years, which we're very, very excited about. Yeah, I know you can't divulge too many deep. details about a contract negotiation, but how's the dynamic between you guys and Bedard as far as how that deal comes to be? Were you pushing for more years on that deal, or were you happy with where it's settled at? Yeah, you know, I think you're always, you're always, you know, advocating for your position as,

you know, the player advocates for theirs, but it was, it was a really healthy discussion, I would say. I think we both achieved what we wanted out of it. You know, I think we're both very very happy with where it's settled in. And, you know, in the end, it's about getting the player's sign, making sure that they're receiving the right value. You want to make sure that the value they're receiving is commensurate with that, that they're, you know, providing. And we feel we've reached that.

And so that's, you know, a good merger when you can kind of make everyone happy and achieve things for both sides in the negotiation. How much, if at all, did the Leo Carlson contract affect negotiations? Yeah, I don't necessarily know if it impacted them, you know, to, to, you know, a great degree, but it certainly the, I would say, without a doubt, the landscape changed under our feet, you know, mid-negotiation. I don't think there's any doubt about that. I don't know if that will persist moving forward within the marketplace, but it was, it was, you know, it was certainly a, you know, it was, you know, it was certainly a, uh, somewhat of a landscape there and something that we certainly had to consider and be mindful of in the discussions. But I think in the end, you know, we kind of stuck to our path and kind of stayed within our own negotiation and found, you know, a good point of agreement, you know, within our own ecosystem that we had established in negotiations. Well, you're in the exclusive club.

There's 32 guys who are GMs of the 32 teams. and historically, you know, there's been a, I guess, a perception from the outside of kind of an old boys club, there's an agreement, you know, don't go after us, we won't go after you. Obviously, you weren't directly involved in Philly and Anaheim and Leo Carlson in the offer sheet, but you're indirectly involved in all of it because, again, there's only 32 teams, 32 GMs. How do you react to a possible new era where maybe offer sheets are on the table and we could be looking at a very different landscape in terms of, free agency in the league. Well, I think it's absolutely something to be mindful, but I don't, I also don't believe it's, it's, you know, it's not something that, that just came about this summer, right? It's certainly a notable occurrence with, with Leo Carlson, but we've seen it, you know,

in the past and in the recent past with, you know, St. Louis and, you know, Philip Broberg and, and, and the hallway contracts. And so, you know, it's not something that's completely new, but it certainly, you know, puts you on notice and puts everyone on notice in the marketplace to be mindful, you know, not just with, you know, pending you a phase, but, you know, you're pending our phase. And so it's perhaps it compels teams to, you know, react and get deals done sooner than they may have done in the past.

But, again, it's not entirely new, but I certainly believe it was a shot across the bow to many around the league. It feels like if you're going to go after a team's marquee player, like if someone wanted to offer sheep a dart, you would have been like it's an easy match. I can't imagine there was a number out there that you wouldn't match that at. But if you look at the way the Edmonton ones transpired, it's like, hey, they kind of spent money on UFAs,

and now the RFAs, it feels like, have a lot more power in the NHL, than they've had for quite some time. Do you feel that as a general manager? Do you feel like RFAs are in a different position now than maybe they were back in that flat-cap world we were living in? I don't know if that's necessarily how I look at. I think I just almost take the position on my end. What can I do to make sure that I'm putting our organization

in the best position possible? And that comes through diligent cap planning and making sure that we're playing out all the different scenarios. and ensuring that, you know, every scenario is accounted for to the, you know, to the degree we can prepare for it. But, you know, it's certainly something that, you know, teams will have to reckon with moving forward. I don't think there's any doubting that. And so it puts a little extra emphasis on, you know, mindful, you know, budgeting of your cap resources moving forward, especially when you have a lot of young players coming up for contracts.

With Kyle Davidson, GM of the Blackhawks, you know, Connor Bedard, obviously, we knew about him when he was a young guy. He was brilliant junior, unbelievable at the world juniors. And he was so good to start last year, and then that shoulder injury popped up. And he's re-agravated that. He's had surgery. What makes you believe the surgery is going to solve the issue, and he's going to be at 100% when he returns,

and, you know, the rest will be history for Connor Bedard. Well, slight, I guess, clarification is it wasn't a re-aggravation. It was his other shoulder that he hurt. And so, you know, the one that was injured last year was rehabbed and to the point where he and we feel comfortable that it's in a very good spot. You know, this injury necessitated surgery, and we anticipate. nothing but a full recovery. And like you said, he was off to such a great start.

It was such a, you know, a disappointing occurrence for not only him. And, you know, he was playing very well and certainly, you know, making a push for to make that Olympic team, you know, when he, the date of his injury, he was actually tied for third in NHL points. Him and Celebrini were tied behind McDavid and McKinney. So it's pretty elite company. and so he was off to quite the start before his injury in December last year. So, again, it's not something that we're at all concerned with moving forward.

These things happen, and we're excited for him to get back to full strength and kind of pick up where he left off after a great third season in the NHL. How important was it for you to go out and make a trade and bring in Bowen Byram, and what are the expectations for him coming into your team? Yeah, Boe is a play. player, we've loved for a long time here with the Blackhawks. And being able to bring someone of his capabilities and skill set in, I think it's going to elevate our entire group.

It's going to be, you know, he's just, you meet him, and he's got this personality that you feel can elevate your room and elevate your whole team. And I know the players are really excited about it from a management and coaching standpoint. We're very excited about it. And we feel that he's got, he's going to have the runway, and he's got the skill set to establish himself as, you know, a legitimate top-paring defenseman in our league,

which can only serve to help and to push us forward next year. Well, and you trade a top-five pick to do it, something that doesn't happen often in the NHL. You know, we were singing your praises. Like, it's a courageous move. Obviously, you love the player. You paid the player. He comes in and he's going to perform for you.

But how difficult was it to kind of wrestle with that idea that you were giving up a top five pick to get them. We certainly have to, you have to give something to get something, and we believe that both, you know, provides a package that's of significant, you know, not only interest, but value to us. And so, you know, that's what comes with the territory when you acquire, you know, great talent in this league is you have to give up significant assets. And we were comfortable doing that, knowing that we were going to get a player

that not only had something to prove, but we feel is going to give himself and ourselves every opportunity to prove that he is the player that we and he believe he is. And so it was something that we were willing to do and something that the opportunity to acquire a player like Bo doesn't come around very often, especially in the age bracket that fits perfectly with our timeline.

and, you know, that's what we have to do to acquire a player of that status. If you look at your lineup today, you see a lot of youth sprinkled in there and some really high-end youth, I think, as someone like Anton Frundel or Frank Nassar and those guys are getting worked in. Who's that next wave of young players that you think can really help the Chicago Blackhawks in the near future that aren't named, you know, Nazar or Fondel? Oh, gosh, yeah. I'd probably go to the back end off the top of my head.

You know, we've got a lot of really young, exciting players, you know, defensemen take a little longer than some of those forwards. And you look at the players in the back end, we've, you know, outside of Byram, who's, you know, he's still fairly young himself. We've got Alex Vlasik, Ardum, Levshunov, Sam Renzel, and then, you know, even, you know, guys that are, you know, trying to still, you know, establish themselves in the NHL, but we've got all the confidence in the world in,

like Kevin Korninski and Ethan Del Mastrow. And, you know, that's, we got Wyatt Kaiser back there is another exciting young defense. And so we've got a lot of young players that are coming and pushing for spots. And we've got waves coming, too, within our prospect pool. And so we feel we're very well prepared and set up for the years to come as, you know, these guys mature into pro hockey and then into the NHL.

And so, you know, we're really excited about a number of guys coming up through the system. So, you know, we're pretty well into the off season now. We're three weeks removed from, you know, July 1st and free agency officially opening up. But there are still a number of players who are available, including Patrick Kane. I'm sure you're aware of this. The Connor was asked about it yesterday. I believe it was. You know, how would you feel about Kane returning?

Do you want to address that? The idea of Patrick Kane, the Blackhawks, is that something you're, entertaining at all. Yeah, I don't, I, again, I, Patrick, someone that our, our organization and myself have had a relationship with for a long time. I don't necessarily it, um, I think it's, it's right for me to, to comment on what he's, uh, the process he's going to be running this off season. You know, a guy like caner has, has done pretty much everything there is to do in our game. He's a, you know, inspired, um, probably every young player playing hockey out there today with what he's accomplished.

And he's earned the right to take his time and make a decision. You know, we see him very often. He trains at our practice facility in the off season. And so we'll await his decision, but he knows that our door is, you know, it's always open. And, you know, he's a black hawk at heart for life, even if he's not wearing a jersey. but, you know, we've got a great deal of reverence, respect, and love for Patrick Cain. And so we'll leave him to that decision, and we'll see where he ends up when that day comes.

You know, Chicago, and, you know, under your guidance was a team that really kind of stripped it down to try and rebuild it. And there was a, you know, there's a lot of people that look at their own franchises and organizations and say, well, why don't we do that? why don't we take our time and do this thing the right way? And you guys have clearly, you know, you're on route to doing that. You know, how much urgency at this point in your rebuild do you feel to really leapfrog and take that next step in the standings? No, we're certainly intent on pushing and taking a meaningful step. I think we were on our way to taking a very meaningful step last year before, you know,

injuries and that sort of thing happens, but, you know, certainly in a, you know, a rebuilding scenario like ourselves, you're a little bit behind the eight ball from a death perspective, and so we suffered a little bit on that end last year and weren't able to sustain our, you know, early season momentum throughout the year. But, you know, with a, you know, once Connor gets back in a fully healthy lineup, we feel like we're in a position with some of the additions we've made to date to take another meaningful step in and push for the playoffs and playing those meaningful games late in the season. I think that's why you saw us go out and acquire a player like Byram, where we're intent

on pushing this thing forward. And, you know, I think it has to make sense. It has to fit the timeline. And if we're going to expend significant assets, then they've got to be players that we see as part of the solution for the long term. but I think we've identified and shown that if there are pieces out there to do just that, then we're willing to strike. And so we're excited to get going.

I know there's still a little bit of time left in the off season, but there's an excitement in the building. There's an excitement even with players leaving at the end of the last year that they're ready to put in the work and come back hungry to take another step in the fall. You know, when you kind of tear it down and try and build it back up, Did you think, or is it more difficult than maybe you thought to acquire the right veteran pieces to surround your young guys with? I don't know if it's more difficult. I do feel like we were perhaps lucky to find some of those guys, you know, some of which, you know, are recently departed.

Nick Folino and Connor Murphy and Connor was our. here before we started the official, you know, rebuild when I took over. But Jason Dickinson came in. You know, these are just, you know, in terms of leadership, these guys are elite. And, you know, as this thing takes off and proceeds over the coming years and we, you know, hopefully grow into the standings and progress into a playoff team in time, their fingerprints are going to be here long after that, you know, they've departed just because they were such great leaders, they were such great mentors and, and, and, and, and showed

what it means to be a pro and what it means to compete day in and day out. And so we were, we're very fortunate to, to have some of those leaders in the past, and, and we've got some, some great ones remaining within our locker room. And so we're really, we've been really fortunate from that, from that end to, to, you know, have those guys internally and, you know, help push this, push this along and, and mentor some of the young players. Kyle Davidson, GM of the Blackhawks. We'll get you out of here on a projection for the rest of the offseason

and hopefully you can represent the whole league for that standpoint because generally it kind of shuts down. There's still free agents out there, but everyone kind of relaxes a little bit until we get to September. Is that what you're anticipating or do you think there's still some activity going on around the NHL?

Yeah, well, I think there's always activity, you know, like the 31 other managers are, you know, they're competitive guys. We're all competitive. We want to continue to improve our rosters. And that process, it honestly just never ends. And so, you know, I would expect teams to keep pushing. And, you know, whether anything comes to fruition is a different story. But I don't think that pursuit ever halts, to be honest.

It's a year-round endeavor. And, you know, we're going to keep pushing. And I'm sure other teams will, too. So, you know, maybe it's quiet until the fall, but, you know, we'll see. Guys are going to keep trying, and we're certainly part of that group. Kyle, always nice to catch up with a guy who spent some time up at Laurentian in Sudbury, Ontario. There you go. Hey, Frankie, I was actually, I wanted to mention this.

I was lucky to be in the draft room. Mike Felino let me help out around the wolves when in the 2000. 2009-oh-HL draft when the wolves were excited to select an exciting young defense and from the Von King. So I was in the room when that happened. And, yeah, it was a kind of nice, cool, full-circle moment for myself, seeing you do so well. And I know I've got a bunch of buddies back home, and the group chat was blowing up a little bit when they saw my name flash across the screen and see that I was going to be on the show today.

I love it. It's kind of funny, eh? Like you could be named general manager of the Blackhawks, and you'd be like, hey, congrats, buddy. You're going to be on overdrive today? We're huge in Sudbury. They love us up there. Oh, you guys are big in Sudbury.

Believe me. That's awesome, man. Very cool stuff. Great stuff. Great catching out with you. Thank you for doing this, Kyle. Thanks, guys. Appreciate it.

You got it. Kyle Davidson joining us here on the Maple Toyota Hotline. It's time to Toyota check out the Toyota Tacoma Toyota. Tundra pickup trucks, both available, is hybrids, Maple Toyota near Canada's winterland and the Maple Auto Mall. I haven't been up to Sudbury in a while. It's probably about 20 years since I've been up there,

but I love that building. It was such a great building. Yeah, they're building a new one. That's a shame. They better keep that wolf. They better have that wolf, man. It's got to get to center ice and back whenever they score. You know what I wonder?

Like if Overdrive did an OHL circuit, what city overdrive would be the biggest in? Sudbury would be top five. Subbury would be very high. Yeah, Sudbury, Sudbury, we got a lot of support up there. I think Barry, your ties to Barry. Yeah, Barry, I think there'd be a lot of connection to Barry.

I think you're probably right with that. I don't know, that's a good question. Windsor? I could see this being really big as Windsor. I think Guelph because of O's connection. You know, I got to believe that we've got a hefty amount of support in Guelph. Got Bob McKenzie and Kitchener. I know Bob's still checking in.

Yeah. You know, Bob's doing this thing. Well, with the kitchen, like with the Rangers in the Memorial Cup, I did get a little hazes of fraud. Like, I was getting that out there. It's still around. It's still kicking around. It's still out there every once in a while.

Yeah. It's not going to die. No. No, in football seasons around the corner. You know Luke and O are going to be saying it nonstop. Yeah. It's getting close, man. Did you get any of that out in Cabot?

Like, were you getting hazes of fraud? No, I don't remember any fraudulent conversations or comments. I don't remember. I ran into a, bunch of people, though, that, you know, talking about, generally it's the Leafs, you know, a little bit about the World Cup, a little bit about the golf game. It's awesome out there.

Man, I love that place. Like, it's, it's very patriotic, too, you know? Like, you grew up, you hear about places like Pinehurst and Bandon and, of course, great spots in Scotland and Ireland and England, et cetera. It's amazing that we got a place like that. It's like a marquee spot, you know, in the country. And it's a great, great place. Great hospitality.

Great, great staff, great people up there. It's awesome. I think I saw you post a pretty good number. I did. Did you fire a 79 out there? 78. You fired a 78 out at Cabot? 78 off the cliffs.

Off the cliffs. Yeah. I was on fire. I was actually the high man. So I was playing with a few guys. Two guys shot 70. My boy, Donnie shot 75. So I was 78, and I was holding people back.

That's how good everybody else was. Yeah. So we felt pretty good. But you're just, you're, you need to be surrounded by people that are better. I know. And that generally is kind of what happens on the golf course, but maybe it was a once in a lifetime thing. I don't know.

But this is the issue. This is the issue with you hosting this show is that you're always the smartest guy in the room. You need to be surrounded by smarter people than you in order to really hit your potential. Well, that'll be the, that's what's coming in September. It's, you're actually kind of jumping the gun on our big promotion. At the O Dog and Noodles, IQ through the. roof for season 11 of overdrive starting right after labor day. That's what the script writers

are going to put in next to your script. Is that IQ through the roof? That's your new slogan? Yeah, IQ through the roof. That's what's coming in September. All right, confirm and I coming up. Best bets later in the hour. Overdrive continues up on YouTube live. Get Bell, Pure Fiber Internet with Crave Netflix and Disney Plus from $94 a month. Price guaranteed for two years on internet with a two-year term and auto pay credit. Visit bell.ca for details and to check availability. Bell, connection is everything. You've heard the chaos.

Now you can see it. Hello. My gosh. Watch all your favorite podcasts from start to finish, right inside the free IHR radio app. Gets the blood going up. Catch every laugh and eye roll on shows like the Tom Green Farmcast and park the bus.

Now with full video. We're building a ramp for Tony Hawk. It's the same hosts and the same chemistry with all the hilarious moments you've been missing right on your screen. Cheers. Open the free IHR Radio app. Search video podcasts and tap watch. I can neither confirm or deny that this is in fact a segment. Austin trades Andrew Raycroft to Toronto in exchange for the rights to Tuka Rass.

It's been my honor and a privilege to serve as the general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs Hockey Club. It's time for confirm or deny. Do you regret giving all those gentlemen the news? no trades or no movement clauses? Can either confirm or deny that? I can't confirm or deny that. All right. Confirm and deny. Brought to you by Boston Pizza Canada's favorite sports bar.

Enjoy $15 lunch at BP where you get an entree of side and a drink and you'll get it all in 20 minutes or less. But fast lunch doesn't have to be fast food. See you for a $15 fast lunch. Your local Boston pizza. All right, I love it. Confirm or deny. Statements are made.

We either confirm them or we deny them. Very similar to another. segment that was being played on the show last week. I'm not allowed to say it. We had to pivot. It felt weird to not play, you know what I'm talking about. Watch it. I can't say it.

Be careful. You can say it in French. I've confirmed that. Wee-N-G-N-G-G-N-G-E. I think we're allowed to say that. Yeah, I think so. I think so. All right, confirm it, deny.

Statements are made again. We confirm them or we deny them. I cannot believe that this is a legitimate, confirm a deny, but it is. and it actually is worthy of debate. Confirm or deny, Vladi Jr. ends the season with 10 plus home runs. Did you just say 10 plus?

Yes, he's got six right now, and they've got 62 games to play. Four home runs in 62. This should not be debatable. Forget what he's done already. If I phrase it differently, can he hit four home runs the rest of the year? That is insane that that's a question. but he's on pace to not hit four home runs the rest of the year. So go ahead.

Confirm. I'm going to confirm because, A, this is a guy who is a $500 million player who hits home runs and hits for power. Is he doing it right now? No, absolutely not. But in 60-something games, can he hit four plus home runs? Yes. And if he doesn't, my God, am I worried? Now, I'll say this, though.

if you phrased this question and said 14. Like, Vladdy can get to 15 home runs this year, I might be saying deny. But at 10 plus, I'll say confirm. Yeah, I'm with you. Like, he hit one of the warning track last night. Again, it doesn't mean anything. But off the bat, I thought, all right, there it is.

He's got to finally get a home run at the Rogers Center. I'll confirm it because I think what could happen is he might hit four home runs in the last seven games of the season, right? Like he'll just get red hot. He'll have two home runs in a game, September 25th, then hit one on the 27th, then hit one on the 29th. Like, I could see that happening. And again, he's on pace for less than that. He's on pace for like nine home runs.

That's what he's on pace to do. And it's crazy to say that. It's absurd. Like this is truly one of the more staggering confirm which denies to read. If you were to jump in a time machine and go back to April 1st. You know, and again, you say, no, he's healthy. He's playing every single day. Like this guy, I would have figured he'd hit home run.

He'd have 10 home runs by the middle of May, possibly. You know, honestly, the way, like the way he finished last season, I thought he was going to come back and just pick up where he left off and chase 40 home runs and chase an MVP. Dude, that's it. That's the number right there. You just said it. Like going into the season, I'm like, the way Vladdy played and the play,

playoffs and the fact he was able to really rise to the occasion. And now he's got the deal done. Like, it's 40 plus. Is it going to be 40 plus every year? No, are you going to have down years? But, man, to think that we're sitting here on July 21st talking about 10 plus is crazy stuff, crazy stuff. Yeah, it is.

But we're both confirming it. So a little bit of positivity, a little bit of optimism here. We're believers. Vladdy's going to hit four more home runs. Yeah. Whoopty-do, Basil. Yeah. All right.

Confirm it tonight. one of Kevin Gosman or Shane Bieber will be traded by the deadline. I'm going to confirm that. They're both UFAs, right? Like, Gosman was on a five-year deal. It's up this year, right? Yep. And Bieber, you picked up an option.

That's right. He picked up the option, which at the time everyone was like, okay, there's something to that. Why would he pick that up? So, you know, now that Bieber's pitching, Gosman has been inconsistent, I still think there's something there that a team is going to say, we'll take depth.

we need to bolster our rotation. And the fact that both those guys are UFAs, it makes it easier for the Js to digest making a move like that. So I will confirm it. I would too. And I wouldn't be shocked that both of them went. Like Bieber went through this dance a year ago where he was recovering from Tommy John.

He didn't get back until September. And he gave them some pretty good stuff. You know, like he was a part of the rotation for all three series in the playoffs. He wasn't great. but he was good. And like he got hit early in games, but generally he got through it and he gave them pretty good production.

You know, Gosman, his last seven or eight starts have been troubling, but it's not an injury thing to my knowledge. You know, like if he's healthy, you reset him. I think there'd be a market out there for him. Be disappointing to see them go, but I think if they're going to sell, and if this continues for the rest of this week,

three more against Tampa than at Fenway for three. They drop four of their next six games, then that's it. It's white flag time. You're seven, eight games out of a playoff spot. It's over. It's done. No one can pretend to be optimistic or pretend like it's going to change. And then everything has to be on the table, including two guys who are not going to be a part of your team next year.

Well, let me ask you this. And that's what's going to happen with these two guys. And, you know, they're probably not going to be a part of the team or maybe you have plans that they're not going to be a part of the team. but how much do you care about the return? Like if you're shopping both of those guys, are you just doing it just to do it and bring something back? And if it hits great, if it doesn't, or are you trying to bring back something that is more of a sure thing?

Like, there is an element of pride that comes with the front office, right? Where they set a price and they don't get off of it. You know, like, and I think that's the, that would be what we would need to know, which we don't. What would be the asking price from Rossack? Like if Gosman is available and he's out there, what does he have in mind that is mandatory? And it's a negotiation. You're not going to get everything you want.

But we've seen it before with every team. You know, all three teams, the Blue Jays, the Raptors, the Maples, the Raptors were most famous when Maasai was running things. He would not budge, even though they weren't very good and the player was going to leave. The Lowry situation was the best example of that. Wasn't going to do it. He had a price. and he wasn't going to allow other teams to take advantage of it because if you allow them to take advantage of you now,

they're waiting for you in the off-season two, right? So that's an important detail that we don't have. Like what are they willing to trade him for or both of them for? But I think, you know, if it's even close to the price being met, you pull the trigger on that. Confirm or deny. Macklin Celebrini, who still has a year left on his deal, but can negotiate an extension as of now,

Macklin Celebrini, Quinn Hughes, Cal McCarr, all of them going into the final year of their respective contracts. All of them will make more than Leo Carlson's $18 million per year. Oh, I am going to deny that. I think there's going to be one of those guys that maybe slides in a smidge under Leo Carlson and is going to look at his team and say, I left some money on the table for you guys. Go ahead and spend some money because we want to win a cup here. And I think if you look at Macklin Celebrini, he would have every right to push for the 20%, which I guess is $20.8 million going into next season. It doesn't have to, though.

He can get a certain percentage of the cap that will make him feel good about his number. For Quinn Hughes, that's an interesting one, Hayes. They have Carill Caprisoff making $17 million. So if Quinn Hughes is going to go to Minnesota and say, I want $18.5 million, that's a lot of money. tied up in two players. Two really good players, but that's a lot for two guys. I don't see why he wouldn't do that, though. If you're Quinn Hughes, like, you have no obligation to Minnesota. They traded for you. They're desperate to keep you. Capri Soff, they paid because of what he represented there. Yes. But Hughes is better. He's more important in terms of wins and loss.

He 100% is. The guy that I think would maybe slide in a little under is Kail McCar. It's Colorado, man. They're up against the cap. They got a really deep team. They got to make sure that they can ice a deep team like that. And they kind of fizzled out last season. I could see McCar maybe being the guy that's most likely to do that. But that wouldn't make him, I don't know. To your point, maybe that makes him the second highest paid defenseman because Hughes would topple him.

I'm going to confirm it because a year from now, the cap's going up even more than this, right? Like it's obviously you're projecting what it's going to be, and that's what they would be, you know, basing this contract off what they think the cap is going to be. But if it consistently goes up every single year, if it's going up six, eight, ten million dollars, you know, the three of them, those are three of the,

you could argue three of the five best players in the league. Yeah. You know, certainly three of the six or seven best. You know, Celebrini's different because he's an RFA, but he is, he is in the, in my opinion, the lineage of McDavid, Sid, OV where he's different. Like what experience he has,

restricted, unrestricted, what have you. It doesn't matter. He's that good. He's that important that it's a blank check scenario. He's going to make a call. Obviously, Mike Greer is going to do everything he can to save every dollar he can for the sharks, and he will lay it on thick as he should.

We've got to pay other guys, and we don't want you to be here on your own, and we believe that we're building a winning program here, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. And it may land. It's only going to land to a certain extent, though. He's getting more than Badares. I can guarantee you that.

I'd be shocked if he didn't make more than $15 million per. Oh, he's going to make more than Bada'clock. He has to at that point. He has to, especially if it's coming up a year later as well, and the cap's going up more. But for me, if I'm Sellebrini, probably at a principle, I would say I'll take $18.1 million, just to say I'm ahead of Carlson.

And even that's a discount. And I think the same thing would apply with Hughes and McCarr. Like, he used to be interesting because I think McCar, and I could be wrong, but I would guess, I would guess he takes Max term. And I could be wrong on that, but I wouldn't be shocked. I don't think he can get eight-year deals anymore. No, it's going to be changing soon in September. You can't get an eight-year deal anymore. So it'll be a seven-year deal, I guess.

It's like a seven-year for if you were staying with the same team and six if you were a UFA. So I could see him doing a max term, though. And if that's the case, then I think he's going to get paid. And it'll still likely be a discount, you know, years. three through seven. But if Hughes signs a three-year deal at like $20 million, that'll be wild to see.

But I wouldn't be surprised, Frankie. I would not be surprised at all if he said, I'll stick around. I like Minnesota. I'm not staying for seven or eight years, but I'll give you three years, but you've got to make me the highest paid player in the league.

This is the thing that Billy Garan is up against. He was up against it with Capriessoff, where Caprisov had all the leverage. What's your choice? Let him walk? Okay, your team's terrible now. So what are you going to do? So you pay him?

Okay, you traded a lot of your future for Quinn Hughes, so you're not going to pay him now? No, if he wants, you're right, if he wants $20 million, you're going to pay him $20 million. I was thinking, you know, when you mentioned Celebrini and all these guys being top whatever players in the league, like, where does Celebrini land on your top 50 when we're doing it in September? Because there's... The top 10, 100%. Oh, forget about top 10. I'm wondering if he sneaks into that top five.

Well, honestly, I think as of now, I'd have Connor one. I'd still go McDavid one. I might have him two on my list. Dude, that's what I'm saying. He might be number two. Like, it's projecting for next year. I get it, McKinney, Coutheraw, McCar, Hughes, I get it. Dry-Siddle.

But, I mean, if he grows on what he did last year, Frankie, there's a legitimate chance he's the best player in the league next year. Like a real chance, Celebrating he's the best player in the league. Well, think about that. the longest time it was Crosby at one until McDavid came into his own and that was it. It's been McDavid's list. If you could pick one guy to overthrow McDavid at some point when we're doing this list in the next few years, I think it's celebrated. Because Drysidels had his chance.

McKinnon has had his chance. All these, you know, Kuteroff, no one's done it. But this is the guy that can do it. That'll be interesting. Okay, let's do that. Confirm a deny on the fly, at least one member of the TSN panel. or voting panel will have Celebrini number one on their list. I'm going to confirm that.

I think there's always just someone who's the smartest guy doing that list that has to send it in and follow up with Lainer and say, do you see what I put in number one? What do you think of that? Check this son. I got Celebrini at one. And then it gets really crazy. He's got McDavid at like 23, right?

Projecting an injury and it's just, you know, really putting a lot of thought into it. Crazy, crazy stuff. Yeah. Okay. Now, I'm with you, though. I mean, he was, last year, Kutrov won the MVP. McDavid was brilliant. McKinnon was brilliant. Celebrini was right there with him. Like, he was right there, playing on the worst of the four teams.

Yes. With the least amount of help around him of the four teams. Like, by a significant margin, in my opinion. All right, here's one on the fly for you. Confirm or deny. At some point in his career, Macklin Celebrini, will overthrow Connor McDavid as the number one player on TSN's top. Yes, confirmed.

That's the guy. That's happened. Yes. As of now, I mean, you know, we'll see what happens with Bred. We'll see what happens with Leo Carlson. There's other really good young players in the league. But he is, what he's done the last two years and this past year in particular, you know, 40 plus goals, 115 points. He played for Canada. He was maybe their best player close to it.

Like, he was so good at the Olympics. He was a dog. He was unbelievable how good he was. He is clearly. He is clearly. Clearly the guy, like, waiting for the baton to be passed, the question will be, can he take it from McDavid, which is what I think you'd be hoping for if you're a hockey fan.

Like, I don't want to see McDavid fall off, and I don't think he will. Like, I think he's still got, you know, it's not going to happen forever. Like, Sid, the same thing. Sid is a dog, Sid is a guy that works his ass off all the time. By the time Sid hit 32, 33, it was McDavid's turn. You know, and that's probably Connor in the next two or three years, where just naturally he's going to be at a different point in his career.

But I'd love to see a true battle. You know, and you can argue that's been happening. Kutraub won the heart this year. McKinnon won a couple years ago. Yeah. Like those guys have been fighting for that mantle with McDavid. But the idea of Sellebrini, you know, officially being a part of that race and maybe isolating the two of them in particular, that would be really, really cool.

They're both in the same division, play each other a bunch. You know, that's what I'm looking for. And San Jose, like, there's something about that team when they're really humming and that building is cooking. That's a fun market, man. They just, they've been starved for it. They haven't had it for quite some time. But that's going to come alive again with Celebrini and Company. Big time.

Confirm in the night. Tom Brady wrestling Logan Paul will be a box office smash. Well, I'll confirm that it's going to be a box office smash because people are dumb and they're going to spend money on it. But doesn't mean it's going to be good. It's just, I don't know, man. Why does Tom Brady need to start getting involved in these types of things? Like, he's slapping him out and he's giving him the finger. Like, is he okay?

Is he need money? Like, is this a bucket list thing? I don't understand this thing, man. I don't either. I mean, it's clearly, it's a manipulated, you know, plan and script here that they're doing. You know, Brady and Logan Paul, them at the World Cup final. and I think it's being reported that that's where it's going. Like they're going to be at WrestleMania or something.

I don't know what they're going to do. My theory on Brady, like I do wonder financially, I don't know. You know, I know he was in, there was some crypto stuff going on, I think. You know, a couple of divorces can cost you some money. But Tom's made a lot of money, and he's still making money. He's still the lead analyst for Fox making almost $40 million a year. But I do wonder if it's that this guy for 20, five years was so locked in on football that never allowed himself to let loose or try things that he wanted to try.

And now that he's out of the game, he's just, he's catching up on lost time. You know, and like this one in particular is a little bit strange, but it wouldn't be the first time. Like this is, this is what wrestling does. They build up main events. They get people involved somehow. You know, there's been a lot of celebrities, former athletes that have been involved in, you know, wrestling stuff. and storylines, et cetera. And I just wonder if that's what's going on with Brady,

that now he's out, he's single, and he's like, I'm just going to do whatever I want. Maybe he was a huge wrestling fan growing up, and this is what he always wanted to do. Yeah, maybe. Honestly, who knows? But at the crux of it, it's like if someone's going to throw a pile of cash at you to do something that really isn't that difficult

and you don't mind doing it, you're probably just going to do it. Yeah. It is, it is, you know, it's a little bit bizarre. Like, it's not what I was expecting. Like his career in New England in particular, you know, he's pretty isolated up there. He just kind of went about his business, you know, didn't say it ton. That was probably the Belichick regime and him understanding that, you know, he was the leader of a team that was going to win and have high expectations every year.

But what he's done post-playing career has been pretty unique. I mean, he is, he's out there. He's doing everything. He's everywhere. He's on social media all the time. Again, he's in the media. he's part owner of the Raiders. Like the guy's all over the place.

It all equals dollar signs, man. Like it's literally that you just become, he's a, well, he has been a business for a long time. But as far as I'm concerned, that's all it is. Just accumulating dollars and however means necessary to do it. Yeah. Well, that's what's coming here for sure with Tom Brady. All right, best bet's coming up.

Dollars on the line. We're going to pick a winner tonight. Overdrive continues. TSN 1050 and on TSN4. Get Bell Pure Fiber Internet with Crave, Netflix, and Disney Plus from $94 a month. Price guaranteed for two years on Internet with a two-year term and auto pay credit. Visit bell.ca for details and to check availability. Bell, connection is everything.

IHeart Radio is throwing it back. To the days of huge hits and unforgettable albums. A non-stop stream of the biggest and best. Drake, Rihanna, Beyonce, Katie Gaga, the weekend. And more. All your decade defining favorites all in one place. Hi, it's Katie Perry. Hey, it's Bruno Mars.

This is Kesha. Find 2010's The Decade on the free IHeart Radio app. Preset the station so it's always one tap away. Affirm a Denai is brought to you by Boston Pizza, Canada's favorite sports bar. Enjoy $15 lunch at BP where you get an entree, a side, and a drink, and you'll get it all in 20 minutes or less. A fast lunch doesn't have to be fast food. See you for a $15 fast lunch.

your local Boston pizza. All right, best bets powered by Fandul. Make your picks and assemble the same game parlay in seconds on the Fandu Sportsbook app. There's a really cool, you know, betting options when it comes to baseball and specifically batting props. There is a hit a moonshot prop bet that you can make, which effectively you can pay, you know, someone's going to hit a home run plus 400 feet, plus 420 feet. Gladdy's paying 18 to 1 on a moonshot tonight, 420 plus feet. I'm going to take it.

You just think he's due. He has to hit one, and I think when he does, he is going to demolish a baseball. That's what I think is going to happen. I don't see a scenario where it's like a Joe Carter in 93. It just gets over the wall. You know, it's a frozen rope that just holds its spot and barely gets over. I think he launches something when he gets it. Frustration ball.

Yes, and I think he's going to stare at it and watch it leave the park. I can't guarantee you it's going to be an important hit in terms of where the score line is and what's happening with the rest of the team. But I'm going to sprinkle on old Vladie tonight, 18 to 1. Call me optimistic. Call me crazy, quite frankly. But if he hits one, I think he launches one. I think he crushes.

one. All right? There's your prop that tonight. Best bets powered by Fandrel, same game parley is available

for every MLB game. On the Fandreel's sports book app, please play responsibly 19 plus physically located in Ontario. Let me ask you this, Hazy B.

How many guys you think went to a driving range or went to their course and started hitting shots like Ryan Fox and tweaked something this week? He has such a bizarre setup. Like he's got the pointy foot,

The front foot is pointing forward. It's a bizarre stance. He's got kind of a wacky, like, swing, but he just steps up and smacks the golf. Just torques, just torts the ball. I'll guarantee there's at least a dozen golfers in the GTA that did that and went home to their wives and said, I tweak something in the range.

Why did you tweak something? I was doing something now. I was trying to hit the ball like this guy. He's like, because he swings out of his shoes, too, man. He has a deep back swing and he comes through like with some pretty significant pace. And it's just a funky setup. Like I watched them at the Canadian Open. Like I was, you know, behind the ropes, watch him. I'm like, this guy's got a wild setup. But he, he picks a club. He picks a shot and he steps up. He gets in his funky delivery and he just hammers golf balls around the park.

It's great. Pace of play, baby. Let's keep it going. It's an amazing thing. Yeah, I don't think he's at the 3M this week. I'm pretty sure he's not going to make it. He withdrew from that, which is a tale as old as time. What a shock that he's not going to make it to a beautiful Minneapolis, Minnesota for the 3M. Shocking, shocking development. All right. Good stuff, Frankie.

Thanks for doing this, buddy. As always, we appreciate it. Thanks to everyone behind the scenes for helping out today. We appreciate that. Everyone for tuning in today. TV radio, podcast, web up on YouTube live and soon to be streaming up on Crave. We're out of here. Enjoy your evenings.

Enjoy the games tonight. We're back tomorrow at 4 p.m. We'll chat then. Hey, I'm Ruby Carr, the host of the podcast, Encore. Check out our brand new episodes featuring music from the show that everyone is reheating as we speak. Heated rivalry. Join me as I go behind the songs that brought Shane and Elia together. I'll tell you the stories of Fice, My Moon, My Man, Wolf Parades, I'll Believe in Anything,

and tattoos all the things she said, and how they all became a part of this global. Global Phenomenon. Stream on IHeartRadio, Crave, or wherever you get your podcasts.